Staff Technical Sourcer

Shield; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Shield AI is seeking a Staff Technical Sourcer who will own the top-of-funnel strategy for aerospace engineering talent. You will map markets, build pipelines, and leverage AI tools to identify and engage world-class engineers across Aerodynamics, Propulsion, and related disciplines.

You’ll partner with recruiters and leaders to define target profiles, create repeatable sourcing processes, and deliver high-quality candidates for mission-critical programs in a fast-paced, impact-driven

Qualifications

• 8+ years of technical sourcing experience in aerospace/defense or related complex hardware software industries.
• Proven market mapping, competitive intelligence, and candidate generation for highly specialized aircraft roles.
• Deep expertise with modern sourcing platforms (LinkedIn Recruiter, HireEZ, SeekOut, ClearanceJobs, GitHub).
• Ability to influence recruiters and leaders using market insights and talent intelligence.
• Hands-on experience creating AI-powered sourcing workflows and automation.
• Experience using AI development tools to build repeatable sourcing processes.
• Excellent communication and storytelling to engage highly technical candidates.

Responsibilities

• Own top-of-funnel sourcing with recruiters and leaders to define target profiles across Aerodynamics, Avionics, Propulsion, and more.
• Map markets by company, geography, and org structure; identify hidden talent pools and trends.
• Generate and engage candidates through multi-channel outreach and proactive pipeline building.
• Build long-term pipelines with passive and cleared aircraft engineers for just-in-time hiring.
• Leverage AI to scale sourcing with workflows, agents, and automation.
• Create market maps, talent reports, and scalable recruitment documentation.
• Coach recruiters and leaders on market insights, strategy, and talent availability.
• Collaborate across Talent Acquisition to optimize messaging and candidate experience.
• Measure sourcing effectiveness and iterate based on analytics.

Skills

Market mapping

Boolean search

Candidate generation

Sourcing strategy

AI-powered sourcing

Communication

Relationship building

Storytelling

Talent intelligence

Tools

LinkedIn Recruiter

HireEZ

SeekOut

ClearanceJobs

GitHub

Claude Code

OpenAI Codex

Cursor

GitHub Copilot

ChatGPT

Gemini

Job description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BATaircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn,X,Instagram, and YouTube.

We’re looking for a Staff Technical Sourcer who lives and breathes talent discovery - someone who can take a complex, highly specialized aircraft engineering need and translate it into a precision sourcing strategy. You’ll be the go-to expert for talent intelligence, market mapping, proactive candidate generation, and pipeline cultivation across our aircraft and advanced aerospace engineering organizations.

This isn’t just a “find resumes” role - it’s about building intelligence, relationships, and repeatable systems that fuel our aircraft engineering hiring engine. As a Staff Talent Sourcer, you’ll serve as a strategic partner to recruiters and hiring leaders while leveraging modern AI tools, market intelligence, and scalable sourcing practices to help us identify and hire world-class aircraft engineering talent.

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

• Own the top of funnel: Partner closely with recruiters and hiring leaders to define target profiles and build deep, data-informed sourcing strategies across Aerodynamics, Aerostructures, Propulsion, Flight Sciences, Avionics, Electrical, Mechanical, Systems, Manufacturing, Test, and other aircraft engineering disciplines.
• Map the market: Develop comprehensive talent landscapes by company, skillset, geography, and organizational structure; identify hidden talent pools, competitor insights, and emerging talent trends to inform recruiting strategy and workforce planning.
• Generate and engage: Use advanced Boolean search techniques, sourcing platforms, and creative sourcing channels (LinkedIn Recruiter, SeekOut, HireEZ, ClearanceJobs, GitHub, engineering communities, niche aerospace and aviation networks, conferences, referrals, and more) to identify, engage, and attract exceptional aircraft engineering talent.
• Build pipelines proactively: Cultivate long-term relationships with passive, cleared, and highly specialized aircraft engineering talent to enable just-in-time hiring across strategic programs.
• Leverage AI to scale sourcing: Design, build, and continuously improve AI-powered sourcing workflows, research agents, and practical automations that increase recruiter productivity, accelerate candidate discovery, enhance market intelligence, and improve operational efficiency.
• Build repeatable sourcing systems: Use AI tools and workflow automation to create structured market maps, talent intelligence reports, outreach content, sourcing documentation, and scalable recruiting processes that can be leveraged across the Talent Acquisition organization.
• Be the sourcing SME: Serve as the subject matter expert on aircraft technical sourcing by coaching recruiters and hiring managers on market insights, sourcing strategy, talent availability, competitive intelligence, candidate engagement best practices, and emerging recruiting technologies.
• Partner for impact: Collaborate cross-functionally with Talent Acquisition Operations, Employer Brand, University Recruiting, and Aircraft Engineering leaders to optimize recruiting strategies, outbound messaging, candidate experience, and operational excellence.
• Track and iterate: Use recruiting analytics, experimentation, and storytelling to measure sourcing effectiveness, optimize outreach strategies, improve conversion rates, and continuously evolve sourcing practices.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• 8+ years of technical sourcing experience, ideally in aerospace, defense, aviation, advanced aircraft, or other complex hardware/software industries.
• Proven track record in market mapping, competitive intelligence, and candidate generation for highly specialized aircraft or aerospace technical roles.
• Deep expertise in advanced Boolean search, LinkedIn Recruiter, HireEZ, SeekOut, ClearanceJobs, GitHub, and other modern sourcing platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to operate as a consultative partner to recruiters, hiring managers, and senior aircraft engineering leaders, influencing hiring strategy through market insights and talent intelligence.
• Hands-on experience building or leveraging AI-powered sourcing workflows, agentic AI tools, workflow automations, or practical AI solutions that improve recruiting or business processes.
• Direct experience using AI development environments or coding assistants (such as Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, Gemini, or similar tools) to create repeatable sourcing workflows, structured research outputs, market intelligence, process automation, or operational documentation.
• Experience building and maintaining long-term relationships with passive, cleared, or niche aircraft engineering talent.
• Excellent communication and storytelling skills with the ability to engage highly technical candidates and influence stakeholders.
• Strong judgment, curiosity, and a continuous improvement mindset with the ability to evaluate and adopt emerging AI technologies to improve recruiting outcomes.
• Highly organized, data-driven, and able to operate autonomously in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Prior experience supporting aircraft, aerospace, aviation, advanced vehicle, or defense engineering organizations.
• Experience navigating export control, ITAR, EAR, or security-cleared recruiting environments.
• Familiarity with Ashby and recruiting analytics, CRM, or talent intelligence platforms.
• Experience supporting high-growth, venture-backed technology organizations.
• Demonstrated passion for staying ahead of emerging recruiting technologies, sourcing methodologies, and AI advancements.